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20-Year Prison Term For Suspect In Sparta Murders From 2002

Tuesday, 09 October 2012 19:27 | | |

Much anger and many tears in a Sparta courtroom on Tuesday, as a Neillsville man was sentenced for a double murder that occurred 10 years ago.

Judge David Rice ordered Larry Schaffer to serve 20 years for the robbery-related deaths of Kale Kvistad and Connie De George. Several friends and relatives of the victims gave emotional statements to the court.

Although Schaffer agreed to a plea instead of a trial, he still claims police got the wrong man. Schaffer was found guilty of shooting the couple during a robbery. They disappeared from their Sparta home on Easter Sunday of 2002. Their remains were found by hunters two years later, and Schaffer was charged in early 2011 after allegedly bragging about the killings. One spectator shouted 'Rot in hell' as Schaffer was taken from the courtroom. Schaffer called back 'I will.'